The moon. The moon was bright.

  A round moon hung at the tip of the trees.

  Yan Qi sat alone beneath them, staring bnkly into the night.

  Suddenly, Guo Dalu walked over and sat beside him.

  Yan Qi frowned, gred at him, and asked, “What are you doing here?”

  Guo Dalu replied, “Just here to chat.”

  Yan Qi kept a stern face. “What's there to chat about? Why don't you go find that ‘Mei Shiniang’ of yours?”

  (T/N: Mei Shiniang" (梅氏娘) is a Chinese name or title. 梅 (Méi)—a common Chinese surname meaning plum (as in plum blossom, a symbol of resilience and beauty in Chinese culture). 氏 (shì)—an old-fashioned way to denote a woman's cn or family name, especially in historical contexts. 娘 (niáng) – means dy, young woman, or sometimes mother (depending on context). So, “Mei Shiniang” can be interpreted as “Lady Mei” or “Madam Mei,” essentially referring to a woman from the Mei family.

  Guo Dalu stroked his chin. “You don't seem to like her very much.”

  Yan Qi said coldly, “She already has enough admirers—she doesn't need me joining the crowd.”

  Guo Dalu said nothing.

  Yan Qi shot him a sidelong gnce. “You seemed to be having a great time talking this afternoon.”

  Guo Dalu nodded. “Hmm.”

  Yan Qi continued, “Since you enjoyed it so much, why come looking for me?”

  Guo Dalu suddenly grinned and said, “You're jealous.”

  Yan Qi′s face seemed to flush slightly. “Jealous? Jealous of whom?”

  Guo Dalu chuckled. “You know she definitely likes me, but you like her—so…”

  Before he could finish, Yan Qi stood up, ready to leave.

  Guo Dalu grabbed his arm, but Yan Qi shook him off forcefully. Guo Dalu grabbed him again and said, “I came to talk about something serious.”

  Yan Qi frowned. “Serious? Do you even know how to talk about serious matters?”

  Guo Dalu said, “Didn't you mention that there's a family with the surname Mei around here? And that their eldest son is called Mei Rujia, also known as ‘Wan Ren Di’?”

  (T/N: 万人敌; wàn rén dí, means ten thousand enemies.)

  Yan Qi replied, “I did.”

  Guo Dalu continued, “Do you think Mei Runan could be his sister?”

  Yan Qi said indifferently, “Whether she is or not has nothing to do with me.”

  Guo Dalu asked, “Does the Mei family have a grudge against Feng Qiwu?”

  Yan Qi responded, “I'm not sure.”

  Guo Dalu specuted, “I think they do. That's why Mei Runan plotted to get rid of Feng Qiwu. But does she also have a grudge against Nangong Chou? Did she rescue him? And if she did, was it for that stash of jewels?”

  Yan Qi said, “Why don't you just ask her yourself?”

  Guo Dalu sighed. “If she hasn't said anything on her own, there's no way I'll get an answer by asking.”

  Yan Qi sneered. “I think you're just too scared to ask.”

  Guo Dalu raised an eyebrow. “Scared?”

  Yan Qi said, “You're afraid of offending her. You don't want to upset her, so—”

  He suddenly stopped talking, stretching out his legs.

  Guo Dalu turned his head and saw Mei Runan approaching.

  She wore a sweet smile, her rge eyes bright with amusement as she said, “These are things you should be asking me in the first pce. Why would I be upset?”

  Yan Qi kept a stern face and asked coldly, “Did you overhear what we were just saying?”

  Mei Runan lowered her head. “I didn’t come here to eavesdrop. I just came to tell you that dinner is ready.”

  Yan Qi said, “What perfect timing.”

  He had already stood up, but now he turned and walked away without another word. Mei Runan watched him leave, then sighed and smiled bitterly. “I haven’t done anything to offend him. Why does he leave the moment he sees me?”

  Guo Dalu chuckled. “Maybe because he likes you.”

  Mei Runan blinked. “He likes me? Then why is he avoiding me?”

  Guo Dalu said, “Maybe because he knows the person you like isn't him.”

  Mei Runan lowered her head and was silent for a long time. Then, suddenly, she ughed.

  Guo Dalu asked, “What's so funny?”

  Mei Runan smiled mischievously. “I’m ughing at you men. You always avoid asking the right questions and never say what actually needs to be said.”

  Guo Dalu started, “I was just about to ask you—”

  Before he could finish, Mei Runan grabbed his hand and pulled him along. “Come on, let’s eat first. I'll tell you everything after dinner.”

  Guo Dalu protested, “Why not tell me now?”

  Mei Runan grinned. “Because I'm afraid once you hear it, you won't be able to eat.”

  She tightly held onto Guo Dalu's hand as she led him into the room, and even after they sat down, she seemed reluctant to let go.

  Wang Dong was staring at her hand; Lin Taiping was also fixated on it, and Yan Qi, despite trying to act as if he hadn't noticed, couldn't help but steal a few gnces.

  Guo Dalu felt an indescribable sense of comfort, so he ate an unusually rge meal.

  As he wiped his mouth, Mei Runan suddenly said, “Your guesses were all correct. I am Mei Rujia's younger sister. Our family does have a grudge against Feng Qiwu, but since we could never find him, we came up with this pn instead.”

  She smiled slightly before continuing, “We had already predicted that Stick and Jin Shi would be able to lure him out of hiding. Since they are government officers, finding someone is naturally much easier for them than for us.”

  At this point, she suddenly let out a sigh before continuing, “Up until now, your guesses have all been right.”

  Guo Dalu asked, “And what about after this?”

  Mei Runan replied, “After this, you all got everything wrong.”

  Guo Dalu was momentarily stunned. “What did we guess wrong about?”

  Mei Runan said, “First of all, that man in bck was not Nangong Chou.”

  Guo Dalu asked, “If it wasn't Nangong Chou, then who was it?”

  Mei Runan bit her lip, hesitating for a long time before finally making up her mind. “It was my brother.”